The prevalence of heart valve disease (HVD) has increased in the last couple of decades across the world, especially in high and middle-income countries. The incidence is, expectedly, high among the aging population. A significant number of international patients travel to India and get admitted to top Indian cardiology hospitals to treat HVD-related conditions. Are you looking for first-world valve replacement surgery at an affordable cost? This article discusses how to choose the best valve replacement hospitals in India.
What is heart valve disease?
Heart valve disease is a cardiological condition that involves the malfunctioning of any one or more of the 4 valves in our heart. These 4 valves are tricuspid, mitral, aortic, and pulmonary. Valves in the heart help blood flow in the correct directionand malfunctioning of valves affects the heart’s capacity to pump blood.
Some of the common heart valve diseases are:
- Valve Stenosis (Narrowing) – stiffening of the valve or very narrow opening of the valve restricting the blood flow because of aortic stenosis and mitral stenosis.
- Valve Regurgitation (Leaking) – In this condition, a valve cannot close properly and pushes the blood flow backward. Examples of such conditions can be mitral regurgitation and aortic regurgitation.
- Valve Prolapse – It occurs when the mitral valve bulges backward, resulting in leakage or regurgitation.
- Atresia – This condition occurs when a patient has a congenital defective valve. It can mean the valve has not formed properly or does not open normally.
The major reasons behind heart valve diseases are:
- Congenital abnormalities in valves
- Age-related natural degeneration (like calcification) of valve
- Untreated streptococcus bacterial infection in throat and mouth (causing rheumatic fever)
- Bacterial and fungal infection in the heart (rare endocarditis infections)
- Hypertension
- Genetic disorder
What are the early symptoms of heart valve disease?
Mild problems in heart valves may not have too many early symptoms. However, if any of the following problems persist or the experience aggravates, you should be careful and consult a doctor.
- Inability to take deep breaths
- Fatigue
- Swelling in the abdomen, feet, ankles
- Chest pain
- Dizziness
- Regular fainting
How to choose the best valve replacement hospitals in India?
Being an international patient, if you are looking for top-quality heart treatment at an affordable cost, the ideal choice will be any of the best valve replacement hospitals in India. The country is a leading global healthcare destination. Thousands of patients travel to India for treatments. As a country of a billion-plus population, India is home to many hospitals and tertiary medical facilities. So, choosing the best valve replacement hospitals in India will require making an informed decision.
To recognize the top characteristics of some of the best valve replacement hospitals in India, you need to learn about the diagnosis, treatment, and allied support a heart valve disease requires.
Diagnosing HVD and accurate prognosis requires consultation with cardiologists and cardiac surgeons with years of experience in the field. Some of the best valve replacement doctors in Indiasuggest performing the following tests before the actual prognosis of the disease.
- Echocardiogram: Ultrasound imaging of the heart.
- Electrocardiogram (ECG): Measures electrical activity.
- Chest X-rays, computed tomography (CT), or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) : Different types of cardiac imaging.
- Cardiac catheterization: Measures pressure and blood flow in the heart.
After an accurate prognosis of the valve malfunction, doctors may suggest several treatment options based on the severity of the condition, like:
- Lifestyle changes: Irrespective of the severity, this is the first step to treat any heart valve disease to relieve the malfunctioning valve from further stresses. This may include maintaining a healthy diet, light exercise, avoiding heavy workloads, staying away from mentally stressful experiences, and managing high blood pressure and diabetes.
- Medications: Common medication prescribed may include diuretics, beta-blockers, or anticoagulants.
- Valve repair: This may require minimally invasive surgical procedures for less severe conditions caused by a damaged valve.
- Valve replacement: For severe HVD and people of younger age, valve replacement is more effective and reliable for long-term solutions.
So, the choice of one of the best valve replacement hospitals in India as a go-to alternative is due to the following factors:
- Access to the best valve replacement doctors across India.
- Availability of advanced cardiology-specific diagnostic testing infrastructure.
- Minimal to zero wait time for surgical procedures.
- Post-surgery healthcare facilities.
- Accreditation to healthcare quality regulatory bodies.
- Affordable costs of the complete procedure, including diagnosis, treatment, and post-treatment costs of check-up, etc.
Bottomline
Indian hospitals providing services to international patients offer treatments at affordable costs, compared to their Western counterparts. However, you should negotiate and talk to more than one of the best valve replacement hospitals in India. This will help you find the best value for the costs you incur and also ensure reliable care.